grisly

/ˈɡɹɪzli/

//ˈɡɹɪzli// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"grisly" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“grisly” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #39,834. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#39,834
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Horrifyingly repellent; gruesome, terrifying.

Corpus desk

Index EN-grisly · grisly · English

grisly · rank #39,834 · 10 variants · 13 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #39,834
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 13 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH Gregorian

Nearest frequency peer: Gregorian (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “grisly”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “grisly” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

grisly vs grist
67% similar
grisly vs gritty
67% similar
grisly vs grossly
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for grisly
PropertyValue
Headwordgrisly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈɡɹɪzli/
Letters6
Frequency rank#39,834
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “grisly”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).grislylands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Gregorian” (#39,833), “guesswork” (#39,835), “gutting” (#39,836). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “grisly” is #39,834. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around grisly (IPA /ˈɡɹɪzli/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #39,834 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for grisly, with forms such as "ggrisly", "girsly", and "grilsy". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "grist", "gritty", "grossly", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English grisely, grysly, grissliȝ, griselich, grislich, from Old English grisliċ (“grisly, horrible; dreadful, horrid”), from grīsan (“to shudder with horror; to tremble, to be terrified; to make tremble, to terrify; to agrise, grise”) (unattest… The correct English form is grisly, spelled G-R-I-S-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Horrifyingly repellent; gruesome, terrifying.
  2. 2
    Obsolete form of grizzly.
  3. 3
    Misspelling of gristly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how grisly appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The photographs of the killings depict a grisly scene.
  2. Magnes and many thinges attractive are, / But nothing ſo allective under ſkyes, / As that ſame dainty amiable ſtarre, / That none but griſly mouth of hell defyes.

Etymology

From Middle English grisely, grysly, grissliȝ, griselich, grislich, from Old English grisliċ (“grisly, horrible; dreadful, horrid”), from grīsan (“to shudder with horror; to tremble, to be terrified; to make tremble, to terrify; to agrise, grise”) (unattested but implied in āgrīsan) + -lic (suffix forming adjectives meaning ‘characteristic of, pertaining to’). The word may also be an aphetic form of Old English ongrislic, agrisenliċ, the past participle of agrīsan (“to agrise”). Compare Danish grusom, Swedish gräslig, Middle Dutch grezelijc (modern Dutch griezelig), Middle High German grisenlich (modern German grässlich, grausen).

This word in other languages

macabro(Español)épouvantable(Français)grässlich(Deutsch)horrível(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggrisly
  • girsly
  • grilsy
  • grislly
  • grislyy
  • grissly
  • grisyl
  • grrisly
  • grsily
  • rgisly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of grisly - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ggrisly1girsly2grilsy2grislly1grislyy1grissly1grisyl2grrisly1
Edit distance from "grisly"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "grisly"?
"grisly" is spelled G-R-I-S-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡɹɪzli/.
What does "grisly" mean?
As an adjective, "grisly" means: Horrifyingly repellent; gruesome, terrifying.
What words are commonly confused with "grisly"?
"grisly" is commonly confused with "grist", "gritty", "grossly". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "grisly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "grisly" is /ˈɡɹɪzli/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "grisly"?
From Middle English grisely, grysly, grissliȝ, griselich, grislich, from Old English grisliċ (“grisly, horrible; dreadful, horrid”), from grīsan (“to shudder with horror; to tremble, to be terrified; to make tremble, to terrify; to agrise, grise”)... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "grisly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Glenda#39,830ghibli#39,826Hendry#39,845frisky#39,821

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

enabler10 variantslaunder10 variantsMansour10 variantsnamaste10 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list